New Delhi: Moscowâ€™s envoy to Delhi Alexander Kadakin today said the protests against the Russian-designed Kudankulam nuclear power project were â€œinspiredâ€ but refused to say who he suspected were behind the propaganda.

The ambassador also hinted that Moscow was less than enthused about Indiaâ€™s civil nuclear liability rules that propose to pin liability on both operators and suppliers of reactors if there is an accident.
The comments came days before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh leaves for Moscow on December 15 for a three-day trip to attend the annual India-Russia Summit the next day with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

The commissioning of the first two reactors at the Kudankulam plant, in Tamil Naduâ€™s Tirunelveli district, has been stalled because of the protests by local residents over fears of radiation. Kadakin declined to elaborate on who or what kind of interest groups may have â€œinspiredâ€ the 51-day-old protests, but said that despite the â€œinternalâ€ problems, Moscow looked forward to expanding nuclear co-operation with Delhi.

â€œWe are looking for agreement not just for units three and four but also units five and six and seven and eight and beyond,â€ he told a media conference. About the liability laws, Kadakin said: â€œWe are hopeful that the rules will not come in the way of implementation of the grand plan of nuclear co-operation (between India and Russia).â€

The first two reactors at Kudankulam will not be governed by the liability laws as the agreement for these had been signed over a decade back. But the Russians have questioned why the third and fourth reactors â€” the agreement to build these units at Kudankulam is in the works â€” couldnâ€™t also have been left out of the purview of the rules, given Moscow and Delhiâ€™s close co-operation in this sector.

The envoy allayed fears in some quarters in India about the new Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) guidelines on export of enrichment and reprocessing equipment as Delhi is not a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty. Kadakin said India, which is not part of the NSG, would continue to enjoy the waivers it received in 2008 for nuclear commerce with the 45-member group.

The envoy said India and Russia were likely to ink up to nine agreements in defence, energy co-operation and trade during Singhâ€™s visit to Moscow. He said the Russiaâ€™s navy would â€œsoonâ€ hand over the Akula-II-class nuclear submarine K-152 Nerpa, which will be rechristened INS Chakra, but didnâ€™t specify any time frame for the delivery.

Russian navy chief Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky had recently said Indian crew were â€œnow absolutely preparedâ€ for operating the submarine, which will be handed over on a 10-year lease on a contract estimated to be approximately $900 million. Kadakin stressed the need to increase bilateral trade from its current level of $10 billion. The two countries have set a target of $20 billion by 2015. He said India and Russia would continue to deepen their friendship. â€œIndia is a superpower in the making and our relations enjoy a special and privileged place,â€ Kadakin added.